Shingle



Patented Apr. 24, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT; OFFICE SHINGLE Clarence It. Eckert, Englewood, N. J., assignor to The Barrett Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey This invention relates to strip shingles and more particularly to strip shingles having tabs along one longitudinal edge thereof and arranged to be laid in courses to provide pleasing I and artistic geometrical figures.

One object of this invention is to provide a strip shingle with tabs of such structure that an eflicient waterand weather-proof covering may be formed by laying the shingles in courses in overlapping relation and at t same time producing geometrical figures b co-operation of the tabs with the intervening spaces therebetween, which figures are pleasing to the eye and avoid the monotonous appearance of the prior art roofs.

' Other objects and advantages will appear from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in Which Fig. 1 is a plan view of a strip shingle embodying this invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the preferred form of shingle embodying this invention; and

Fig. 3 is a plan view showing the shingle of Fig. 2 arranged in courses to form my improved roof construction.

Referring to Fig. 1, reference character 1 indicates the improved flexible shingle which may be of any suitable material. Preferably, the

shingle is made from a felt base, saturated and coated with bituminous material, and thereafter surfaced with granular material, such as slate or the like, which may be of a single color or a blend of contrasting colors. The colored granular surfacing material may beapplied in strips or bands, the contiguous tab portions of.

the shingles being of like or contrasting color.

Along one longitudinal edge of the body portion 2 of shingle 1, a pair of spaced tabs 3 of particular shape and structure are disposed equidistant from the transverse edges of the body portion. The space 3 between the tabs is complemental in shape to that of the tabs. The length of forward edge 6 of the tabs and that of the inner edge 14 of the space 3' between the tabs are relatively short as compared with the length of the ,line of jointure 15 between the tabs and the body portion. In the embodiment of the invention shown, the length of line 15 is approximately five times the length of the forward edge of the tabs.

Also, the length of the tabs, i. e., the vertical distance between line 15 and forward edge 6, is relatively short as compared with the width of the shingle, the length of the tab being approximately one-third or less than one-third the distance between the forward edge of the tab and the rear edge of the body portion. Due to the relative lengths of 15 andforward edges 6 of the tabs and the shortness of the tabs as compared with the width of the body portion, it is found that the tabs are relatively non-flexible, resist the action of wind tending to lift them, and the-tabs adhere to and lay closely on to the roof deck.

One side edge 4 of the tabs, it will be noted, is relatively much shorter than the other side edge 5. Thus, each tab might be considered of semi-hexagonal distorted shape. When the shingles of Fig. 1 are arranged in courses, they form a .distorted hexagonal appearance which avoids the monotony of the regular hexagonal appearance of the well-known shingle, such as shown in the patent to Cumfer, No. 1,604,339, and at the same time provide a more eflicient roof covering as will appear more fully hereinafter.

In the form of the invention shown in Fig. 2, three spaced tabs are provided; the end tabs 9 and 11 are of like size and shape and of the 0 same contour as the tabs 3 above described in connection with the shingle of Fig. 1. The intermediate tab 10, on the other hand, has the side edges 12 and 13 equal in length, the length of these edges being the same as the length of 5 side edge 4' of tabs 9 and 11 and much shorter than the length of side edge 5' ofv these tabs. Thus, the structure of the three tabs is such that the intermediate tab 10 is of diiferent shape from that of tabs 9 and 11;'space 15 between tabs. 9 and 10 is complemental in shape to that of tab 9 and the space 16 between tabs 10 and 11 is complemental in'shape to that of tab 10. The inner edges of the spaces between the tabs are all equal in length and the aggregate of edges 5 1'7 and 18 is equal in length to edges 19 and 20 and to the length of the forward edges 14' of the tabs 9, 10,'and 11.

In Fig. 3, the shingles of Fig. 2 are depicted arranged in overlapping courses, the transverse edges of the individual shingles of each course being disposed in abutting relation. In accordance with this invention, the shingles are laid with the forward edges l4 of the tabs in the overlying course coinciding with the inner edges 1'7, '18, 19, and 20 of the recesses in the contiguous underlying courses, the spaces 16 of the upper shingles overlying the tabs 10 of the lower shingles. By positioning the shingles so that the space 16 overlies the regular semihexagonal tab 19, the joints between, the shingles in the respectivecourses are staggered, i. e., the joints in any two contiguous courses do not occur in .the same straight line or in close proximity to each other. This permits proper and ready placement of the shingles by the roofer in the laying of succeeding courses to obtain the desired spacing between the joints, since it is only necessary for the roofer to align space 16 with the underlying tab 10 to obtain the desired staggeredarrangement of joints in succeeding courses. At the same time the pleasing and ornamental arrangement of figures illustrated in Fig. 3 is obtained. From this figure it will be noted that with respect to complete figures horizontally of the roof, in each row one regu lar symmetrical figure 21 alternates with two distorted or asymmetric hexagonal figures 22; that with respect tothe regular rows of figures inclined to the eaves, asindicated by the reference character B and the arrow associated therewith, a similar arrangement of individual figures in each row exists and that with respect to the arrangement of rows 0, D, and E inclined to the eaves, a row CZ composed of all regular hexagonal figures alternates with two rows, D and E, both composed of only irregular or asymmetric hexagonal figures.

Due to the relation between the width of the body portion and the length of the tab, as indicated in Fig. 3, the shingle underlying the abutting shingles in the overlying course extends a distance equal to at least the length of the tab under the joint between the abutting shingles and thus increases the amount of overlap at the joint and hence improves the weathering properties of the roof covering.

While preferred embodiments of the inventio have been described herein, it will be understood that this invention is not confined to the form disclosed but may be variously embodied within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A strip shingle comprising a body portion and a plurality of tabs disposed in spaced relation along one longitudinal edge of said body portion, the tabs on each shingle being of at least two diiferent shapes, withthe forward edges of the tabs equal in length and equal to the length of the inner edges of the recesses between the tabs, said shingle being arranged to be laid with other like shingles in overlapping courses with the forward edges of the tabs of the shingles of an overlying course registering with the inner edges of the recess between the tabs of an underlying course, and the recesses between the tabs of an overlying course of shingles cooperating with the tabs of an underlying course of shingles length of the line of jointure between said alter- 4 hate tabs and said body portion is materially greater than the length of the forward edges of said tabs, the forward edges of all of said tabs being substantially equal in length and equal to the length of the inner edges of the recesses between said tabs, said shingle being arranged to be laid with other like shingles in overlapping courses with the forward edges of the tabsof the shingles of an overlying course registering with the inner edges of the recesses between the tabs of an underlying course, and the recesses between the tabs of an overlying course of shingles cooperating with the tabs of an underlying course of shingles to form a pattern composed of regular hexagonal and irregular hexagonal figures.

3. A roof comprised of like strip shingles arranged in overlapping courses, the individual shingles of each course being arranged in abutting relation, each shingle comprising a body portion and a plurality of semi-hexagonal tabs disposed in spaced relation along one longitudinal edge of said body portion, the sides of the intermediate tab being substantially equal in length and the sides of the alternate tabs being unequal in length, one of said side edges of said alternate tabs being materially longer than the other, whereby the length of the-line of jointure between said alternate tabs and said body portion is materially greater than the length of the forward edge of saidtabs, the forward edges of all of said tabs being substantially equal in length and equal to the length of the inner edges of the recesses between said tabs, each course of shingles comprising in alternate relation two tabs and two spaces, the sides of which are unequ'al in length and a single tab and 'space, the sides of which are equal in length, the spaces having equal length sides inthe shingles of an'upper course being disposed immediately above the tabs having equal length sides in the shingles of a lower course, thus forming rows inclined. to the eaves of regular hexagonal figures alternating with two rows inclined to the eaves of irregular hexagonal figures. F

' CLARENCE R. ECKERT. 

